Canadian Steele

In the previous post I took a look at numbers from the Ipsos Reid poll from late April that showed Stephen Harper’s polarizing effect. Coupled with the latest numbers showing conservatives and liberals basically tied, what can now be surmised is the fact that while people are mad at the liberals, they do not trust Harper.
The Liberal scandal and corruption should be more than enough fodder for conservatives to translate that into more seats with a possible majority government. What is becoming readily apparent is people do not like the way Harper is using this issue, nor do they like being told how they should feel either. The chance for the tories is slipping away, and Stephen Harper is to blame.
In the past, Harper has accused the Liberal party of engaging in “American Style Politics” where it is quite evident that he himself typifies the american stratagem to vote getting. The former NDP leader Ed Broadbent has recently denounced this brand of politics, a brand he claims is getting more popular. The lack of respect, concentration on the opponent’s negative qualities, the “spin”, etc. etc. etc. is the type of discourse we see daily from Stephen Harper. Granted both sides engage in this, but in Harper we see something more exemplary of American tactics rather than Canadian tactics. They are divisive and harmful politics. This is readily apparent when one looks at the highly polarized and reactionary product the states are left with. I think people would love to have a change, but the type of change that Stephen Harper represents does not reflect the people’s wishes, nor the conservatives as a whole.
From rhetoric unrepresentative of Canadians (i.e. his pro-war speech) and questionable inner circle advisors (i.e. Tom Flanagan, a U.S.-born professor, University of Calgary, known for questionable native policy including assimilation) to placing personal agenda before a nation’s agenda and polarizing political strategy, Stephen Harper may not be the promising leader tories were hoping for. I feel that a change in leadership to someone that can actually represent Canada, and not leave them feeling uneasy, would be the most important step in enabling tories to “clean house”.